(Business in Cameroon) - In the aftermath of the fire that destroyed about 150 shops on the night of 23 to 24 February this year in the Congo market, the Douala urban community announced the termination “for default” of the contract to build a modern commercial space of 1,400 shops on the market site; a project initiated after yet another fire that broke out in this market in July 2012.

Works were launched in 2013 by Southwest International Construction Corporation (SICC), and were scheduled to last 2 years, before being suspended for 2 years. Upon a work resumption, the company announced delivery in 2018 but to date, not much is done.

The investment announced by the joint venture between local economic operators and American partners, was XAF7 billion and was to be carried out under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, which requires SICC to build the new market according to international standards, operate it for a fixed period and transfer the site management to the State (the urban community of Douala) at the end of this contractual operating period.

According to the initial plans, the market’s new-look was to include 1,400 shops, 200 toilets, a 120-place car park, two guard gates, a police station, 16 garbage bins and a video surveillance system. The project was expected to generate 1,000 direct jobs during the construction phase, and 171 permanent jobs created at the end of the project.

The reconstruction of the Congo market is not the first project on which SICC has failed in Cameroon. For almost 9 years, this company has been slow to deliver the first buildings of a real estate project initiated in the economic capital; a project for which buyers said they have already paid about XAF1 billion while promoters reported continued financial difficulties.

Brice R. Mbodiam